Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise
by SliferskydragonXxXx
Summary: What if Cloud had kept all of his memories, including the time he was under the effects of mako poisoning instead of being under the assumption of a 1st Class Soldier after Zack's death? How would the story of Final Fantasy VII unfold with this change? Final Fantasy VII AU contains lemons and mixed OSTs included. Cloud x Tifa Pairing
1. Prologue: The Return

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise**

**Pairing:** Cloud x Tifa

**Summary:** What if Cloud had kept all of his memories instead of being under the assumption of a 1st Class Soldier after Zack's death? How would the story unfold with this small change? Retelling of Final Fantasy VII but with a few twists...

* * *

"Talking..."

_'Thoughts...'_

_"Flashback..."_

**Limit Break**

_**Magic/Materia/Summon**_

**[Play/End Music]**

* * *

**Prologue: The Return**

* * *

"_My honor...my dreams...they're yours now. You'll be...my living legacy..."_

Those words echoed in his mind as a 21-year old blonde man with chocobo-like spiky hair was wandering through the barren wasteland to his destination Midgar. He couldn't forget him, he swore as he tread through his journey dragging with him a sword practically as big as his body, the Buster Sword. It was more than just a weapon, it was a symbol of honors and dreams passed down to him along with it carrying the pride of a 1st Class Soldier. But he was no 1st Class soldier, he was just a Shinra trooper that had no talents. His dream to become a 1st Class Soldier was already dead and with it his promise.

"_I'm going to Shinra and become a 1st Class Soldier just like Sephiroth!"_

'_Sephiroth...'_

The name that once held so much respect was now loathed with hatred. His hometown was burned to the ground because of him, along with his mother and everyone else who lived there. As he continued to remember more, a certain point of the memory flashed into his mind.

"_Promise me that if I'm ever in a pinch, my hero would come save me. I want to experience that at least once…"_

"_Huh?"_

"_Come on, promise!"_

"_...Ok, I promise…" _

'_Promise...Tifa'_

* * *

Outside the train station in Sector 7 of Midgar was a young 20-year old woman with long black hair tied in a ponytail at the end where it almost split apart shaped like a dolphin's tail wore a white tank top with a black sports bra worn underneath exposing her midriff and a black mini-skirt over black spanks with a belt and suspenders, wearing red and black fingerless kadoya hammer gloves that had metal on them extend up to her elbows with red boots, black thigh length socks, a metal guard on her left elbow, chestnut-red colored eyes, a white teardrop earring on her left ear along with an incredible bust. This was Tifa Lockhart, a bartender of her bar 7th Heaven located in Sector 7 as well as a member of AVALANCHE, an eco-terrorist group that opposes the Shinra Company's actions to save the world. **(1)**

Tifa sighed as she was waiting for the other AVALANCHE members to show up. It was raining lightly although it would be best described as a drizzle, although raindrops were slipping through the cracks and holes from the plate above reaching their way down towards the slums.

'_Honestly Barret and the others should be here by now.' _Tifa thought.

Before she could think any further, she heard grunting and at the corner of her eye she saw a blonde man struggling while he was walking out of the train graveyard which was an abandoned section of Sector 7. He was holding onto a huge sword before he suddenly collapsed to the ground.

Tifa quickly rushed to the man's side as she propped him to lean against a wall.

"Are you okay?" Tifa asked.

The blonde didn't respond as he continued making more grunts.

"Hey stay with me!" yelled Tifa, but it was no use. Tifa bit her lip until she started to focus on the man's appearance. He appeared to be wearing dark blue pants as well as a dark blue sleeveless shirt giving the appearance of a uniform of some kind along with many crossing belts and a shoulder strap as well as what appeared to be a metal guard strapped to his lower right abdomen with brown fingerless gloves with a black sleeve on his right arm that went up to his forearm as well as golden-like metal claws on his left hand with two metal wrist-like pieces with bolts attached to his left arm, as well as a metal pauldron on his left shoulder with bolts attached to it. He also had a silver earring on his left ear as well as a red cloak-like cape attached to him like a scarf with the end all torn up and wearing brown boots. The sword he seemed to be carrying was practically as big as his body but what was strange was the fact that it appeared to be wrapped in bandages with two straps left tied at the end of the hilt. The strangest thing was his spiky blonde hair which Tifa felt like she had seen him somewhere before. **(2)**

**[Play FFVII ACC OST - Anxious Heart]**

With her curiosity getting the best of her, Tifa lifted the man's face and brushed a piece of hair to get a better look. What she saw shocked her to the core.

She gasped in complete shock as her hands flew towards her mouth covering them with tears starting to form in her eyes as she recognizes the identity of the person in front of her. She only knew one person who had blonde spiky hair that looked like a chocobo and thought that she would never see him again.

"...Cloud?"

Once again Cloud continued grunting, but this time he slowly opened his eyes. They were almost empty as if there was no light in them, but there was something different about his eyes that Tifa didn't remember. Cloud had blue eyes, but instead they were mako-eyes.

Cloud continued struggling to say something until he uttered one word that answered her doubts before he passed out.

"Ti...fa..."

**[End OST]**

* * *

"Cloud! Cloud! Hang in there!" Tifa yelled as she tried to wake him up. A million thoughts ran through her mind as she thought of what to do now that Cloud was here. The little boy who dreamed of joining SOLDIER now appeared before her unconscious. Part of her was happy that Cloud had returned, but another part was worried and anxious as questions started to fill her mind. Before she could continue any further, she heard the whistle of a train getting louder. The train stopped and a dark-skinned man with a gun attached to his right arm stepped out of the train along with three other figures, two males and one female.

The gun-armed man saw Tifa with the male sat on the ground and quickly ran up to her. "Tifa! What's going on? Who's this guy?"

"Barret! Help me get him to the bar! Jesse, Wedge, Biggs carry his sword! Now!" ordered Tifa.

Barret was confused to the situation, but he decided to do what he was told. The group behind him helped out as well with the three of them carrying the huge sword as Tifa and Barret carried him over to the bar.

* * *

"How is he Jesse?" asked Tifa worriedly.

"He's got mako poisoning, an extreme case at that. From what I can tell he just needs some rest and he'll be able to recover." said Jessie as she gave out a sigh after examining Cloud who was placed in a bed. Wedge and Biggs stood at the side while Barret had his arms crossed as he stared at Tifa.

"Mako poisoning? So what's the story with him?" asked Barret as he jerked his thumb towards the blonde.

"He's Cloud…a childhood friend," Tifa whispered softly. "I haven't seen him ever since he went to join SOLDIER."

Biggs, Jessie, and Wedge stared at Tifa with their eyes wide open while Barret was choking on his air and stared angrily at her. "Did you say SOLDIER?!"

"That's what I said." said Tifa, giving out a soft glare towards Barret, not liking to repeat herself.

"SOLDIER? Aren't they the enemy?" asked Jessie.

"Damn straight they're the enemy!" yelled Barret as he stomped his foot on the wooden floor, "Da hell are we doin' lettin' him stay in our hideout!"

"What was I supposed to Barret? Leave him in the rain to suffer in the condition he's in?" replied Tifa, yelling back in equal tone with Barret.

"YES!"

Tifa crossed her arms and gave out a dark cold glare at him, then simply turned her head away to ignore Barret and focused her attention to Cloud.

Barret gave out a curse and walked out of the room while the others following him unsure what to do in the room. As Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie left the room Tifa let a single tear rolled down her cheek as she continued to stare at the blonde who she developed a crush on when he was away.

'_Oh Cloud, what happened to you? Please...don't leave me again...'_

* * *

Nearly six days have passed since Tifa had found Cloud, yet he still hasn't woken up yet from his coma-like state. She always came into the room and sat next to Cloud, checking to see how he was doing and would occasionally clean his face with a wet towel. The last time she saw him was before he left Nibelheim to become SOLDIER when they were sitting on top of the well that was located in the center of town. She couldn't believe how much he grew and wondered how much he himself has changed. After losing her father and hometown, she felt like she lost everything, but seeing Cloud right here in front of her, she now felt he was all what she had left.

Memories of her hometown burning made her lips tightening, her eyes burning, her blood boiling when she started remembering more, it was all Sephiroth's doing. Seeing him again reminded her of the pain of losing her hometown, her father, her friends, and her neighbors. She tried so hard to suppress the pain after that incident and now, all that pain was coming back to her. Though, when she stared at Cloud, all that pain inside of her started to disappear and she could feel her lips trying to form a smile. She placed her hand lightly on Cloud's cheek and stroked it with her thumb. She felt her face turning red as she blushed. She quickly got up and tried to cover her face up so Cloud wouldn't notice it, despite the fact he was still unconscious. As her face returned color, she stared at Cloud one last time and gave out a weak smile before she left the room.

'_Please get well, Cloud. I need you...'_

* * *

A groan escaped from Cloud as he opened his eyes and rose up from the bed awake. He looked down as memories of Nibelheim to Zack's sacrifice rushed through his head as he placed a hand on his forehead. It took him awhile to look at his surroundings. He noticed he was in bed inside a room with a fan on top. He pushed the blankets out of the way as he turned to the side and placed his feet on the floor. Someone must've saved him he thought as he looked towards the window from the edge of the bed he was sitting on. His thoughts were interrupted as he heard the door open and saw a bag with food falling out as he stared at Tifa as she stood there staring at him from the door.

"Cloud!"

Cloud stared at Tifa and as he saw her, he couldn't believe his own eyes as they widened.

"Ti-Tifa?"

Tifa quickly ran towards Cloud and hugged him as tightly as she could. She couldn't help herself but burst into tears as she saw him awake. She was filled with pure joy, happy to feel him let alone speak to him.

Cloud was sat dumbstruck by what just happened. He turned his head towards Tifa who was quivering in the hug. "This is real." Tifa whispered softly as she tightened her grip on the hug. Cloud couldn't help but let a small smile on his face as he returned the hug placing his arms around her gently. **(3)**

"I missed you too." said Cloud softly as he let go of the embrace to look at her. "Were you...the one that saved me?" asked Cloud, still surprised that he was reunited with Tifa.

She slowly pulled herself off of Cloud and wiped the last tear away from her eyes and smiled softly at him.

"Yes. I saw you coming out of the train graveyard at the abandoned section of Sector 7."

"I…can't remember much…head hurts," groaned Cloud as he placed his hand against his forehead again as Tifa tentatively reached her hand out to his.

"How long has it been?"

"…Seven years…"

_'She doesn't know I was there when Nibelheim was burning...but have I really been gone for five years?' _thought Cloud. He lowered his head and mumbled softly.

"Seven years huh?"

Tifa gave a weak nod.

"A lot has happened you know."

"I see…"

A small silence filled the room until Tifa decided to break it.

"Cloud, I don't know if you this. But Nibelheim..." said Tifa as she was worried about his reaction about their hometown destroyed.

"I know, Sephiroth burned it to the ground." Cloud said as the memories of their village and the flames that consumed it were fresh in his mind, as if it was yesterday.

Tifa herself was surprised as she didn't expect his answer. He wasn't there that day, so how could he have known? Unless...

Before Tifa could say another word, a voice cut her off.

"So the punk woke up huh?"

Cloud and Tifa turned to see Barret who had just entered the room as he stared at Cloud.

"Tifa who is he?" asked Cloud as he got up, staring angrily towards Barret.

"Relax Cloud," Tifa smiled softly as she stood up and blocked Cloud from doing anything drastic. "This is Barret, the leader of AVALANCHE."

"Wait a minute…did you say AVALANCHE?" asked Cloud.

"Yeah, she said AVALANCHE. Though we are nothing like the first group. We are a small team and less ruthless. Our main goal is to help the people of the Midgar slums." explained Barret as he also gave out a glare towards Cloud. "Tifa told us you were left to join SOLDIER. Personally I would've left you to rot, but Tifa said she had questions for you."

"I actually have many I want to ask, but for now I'll ask the most important one…Cloud, what happened to you?" asked Tifa with worry etched on her face.

Cloud remained silent for a minute as he lowered his head. A lot has happened after Nibelheim burned down, but the events afterwards while he was comatose were starting to come back to him as clear as day, "Tifa…a lot has happened, but I can't explain them right now."

"You left for SOLDIER whose working for Shinra and you're wearing a SOLDIER uniform. Ya expect us to believe your word?" asked Barret.

"Does it look like I give a shit about whatever the hell happens to Shinra?" said Cloud aggressively as he glared at Barret.

Both Tifa and Barret were surprised by Cloud's response. Sure enough there was anger in his eyes and they could tell Cloud has some kind of history with Shinra, and not good history at that. Tifa had more questions to ask, but she saw Cloud's eyes. She could have sworn she saw sadness in them for a split second. Tifa gave out a sigh as she decided not to push her luck.

"You should rest Cloud. We have a mission were planning on and if your interested your free to join." explained Tifa.

"What kind of mission?" asked Cloud.

"Just wait till tomorrow. But are you up for it, SOLDIER? Don't worry, you'll be paid for your 'cooperation' if you do take the job," replied Barret as he left the room with Tifa following behind.

Cloud sighed and laid himself back down on his bed. He just stared at the ceiling in front of him and turned his head to see the Buster Sword bandaged up resting against the wall next to him.

* * *

**[Play FFVII OST - Opening Theme/Bombing Mission]**

Somewhere in Midgar, a girl with light brown hair is plaited with a large pink ribbon and segmented bangs frame her face. She was wearing a shin-length pink dress that buttons up the front as well as red bolero jacket. She wears brown boots and metal bracers on her wrists and around the edges of her jacket sleeves.

She was crouched in front of some pipes that emitted a soft green glow and slowly opened her eyes revealing emerald green.

Meanwhile a train was running through the tracks at high speed toward the Sector 1 reactor of Midgar. On top of the train was Cloud with his hair and cape flowing wildly through the wind with the Buster Sword attached to his back with two small green orbs attached to the holes of the Buster Sword emitting a small glow.

The train started to use its brakes slowing down with a large amount of steam coming out of the train. As the steam cleared, Cloud flipped off the train landing in style with his golden claw as he slowly stood up and swiped the Buster Sword to the right as he then placed it on his back and stood up with determined mako blue eyes. **(4)**

**[End OST 1:10]**

* * *

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise**

* * *

**(1) Final Fantasy VII Remake - Tifa's Design**

**(2) Kingdom Hearts 1.5 - Cloud's Design**

**(3) Kingdom Hearts 2.5 Reference - Sora & Kairi Reunion Hug**

**(4) Final Fantasy VII Remake - E3 Intro**

* * *

_AN: Yes I made Tifa's appearance based on the Remake if you didn't notice from reading it already. I'm also using Cloud's Kingdom Hearts outfit or his 'Sky Soarer Outfit' as Dissidia NT calls it because GOD I LOVE THAT COSTUME SO MUCH! I honestly like it more than his Advent Children outfit._

_In order to live up to the hype of the long awaited Final Fantasy VII Remake that was announced at Square Enix's E3 presentation, I'll be writing tons of FF7 fanfics that have been stored up inside my brain for too long. Also there aren't really that many CloTi fanfics that retell the entire story of FF7. I get that most of them take place after Advent Children and Dirge but they're just angst stuff that I don't really enjoy. So I took it upon myself to start some fanfics that will retell the memorable story of FF7 that we all love, but with a few twists of course and CloTi pairing. _

_Speaking of which, Tifa finally got announced to Dissidia NT guys! All we have to do now is wait for Laguna since he's like the only one who hasn't appeared into NT yet from Duodecim since the 012 characters included Lightning, Tifa, Yuna, Vaan, and Kain. I really hope they make a remaster for the original Dissidia PSP games and port them to the PS4._

_To those who graciously decided to add me to their favs/follows, some or most of you probably added me because of my RWBY fanfic "The Jet Black Dragon" which unfortunately is on definite hiatus. TBH I lost all interest to continue the story mainly because I've been busy throughout the past years I've been gone. I apologize to those who look towards the updates, but there may be hope or I feel a tiny glimmer of inspiration for me to continue the story, although as I've said before that I'm most likely not going to update it. As for now I'm mainly focusing on FF7 fanfics right now and if you've fav/followed me because you've read my bio, you will know that those stories are about to come out of my head soon I hope you look forward to them. Most fanfics that will appear soon besides the FF7 fanfics I'm working will be Kingdom Hearts, Attack on Titan, My Hero Academia, Yugioh Arc-V, etc. This paragraph will be updated on the Jet Black Dragon as well so to any of those who are reading it from there, I hope you share an interest to FF7 and hope to see what's more to come._

_Speaking of which, here's a little preview of what you're gonna expect here in the Midgar Arc, which will take place during these chapters here along with the other arcs that will take place in this story that I've planned so far…._

* * *

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise [Story Arcs]**

Midgar Arc - Chapters #1-10

Kalm Flashback Arc - Chapters #11-16

Junon to Rocket Town Arc - Chapters #17-27

Wutai Arc - Chapters #28-31

To the Forgotten Capital - Chapters #32-36

North Crater Arc - Chapters #37-40

Mideel & Huge Materia Arc - Chapters #41-?

Chocobo to Weapons Arc - Chapters #?-?

March to the Final Battle - Chapters #?-?

* * *

_**Preview for Midgar Arc:**_

"_Halt! Hands Up!"_

"_You double-crossing!"_

"_You're not real! You're…"_

"_Hold on to that hatred…"_

"_Are you okay?"_

"_A flower?"_

"_So that's it?! You're just gonna walk out ignoring your childhood friend?!"_

'_If you were ever in a pinch, I promised that I'd come and save you…"_

"_I hate Shinra! I hate SOLDIER! I HATE YOU ALL!"_

"_Cloud please don't die! You can't die! There's so much I want to tell you!"_

"_I'm Aerith, the flower girl…"_

"_They're the same as Zack's…"_

"_Come on out Miss Cloud!"_

"_Tell us, or I'll chop them off!"_

"_You're her father?!"_

"_I bet she likes you!"_

"_I don't know…"_

"_Jenova?"_

_"Face it—you turn your back on the present and live in the past. Because the light of the present is too much..."_

"_You don't know me!"_

"_I know. Because, I am you..."_

"_I guess this is goodbye Midgar…"_

* * *

**Next Time: The Bombing Run**

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	2. Chapter 1: The Bombing Run

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise**

**Pairing:** Cloud x Tifa

**Summary:** What if Cloud had kept all of his memories instead of being under the assumption of a 1st Class Soldier after Zack's death? How would the story unfold with this small change? Retelling of Final Fantasy VII but with a few twists...

* * *

"Talking..."

_'Thoughts...'_

_"Flashback..."_

**Limit Break**

_**Magic/Materia/Summon**_

**[Play/End Music]**

* * *

**Chapter #1: The Bombing Run**

* * *

**[Play FFVII OST - Opening Theme/Bombing Mission 1:10]**

"Halt! Hands up!" yelled a Shinra trooper with another stood beside him with their guns ready, but it was pointless as Cloud single-handedly eliminated them in an instant despite the fact he was swinging a sword as big as his body. Behind was AVALANCHE as Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge went ahead of him while Barret stood by Cloud.

"C'mon newcomer. Follow me." said Barret as he ran towards the entrance of the Mako reactor. Cloud followed as he met with the rest of the group in front of the gate huddled around Jessie who was crouched currently inputting a few codes to open the gate. Noticing Cloud's presence, Biggs turned towards Cloud.

"Wow! So you used to be in SOLDIER huh? he asked.

"Well I-..." Cloud said until he was interrupted by Wedge.

"It's not everyday you find one in a group like AVALANCHE." said Biggs as Jessie turned her head to face them.

"Still can't believe that a guy like you from SOLDIER would be here with us in AVALANCHE." said Jessie as she then looked away getting back to opening the door.

"I-uh..." Cloud stuttered seeing he wasn't going to have anytime to finish his sentence without being interrupted.

"Door is open." Jessie said as the gate started to open. Barret gave out hand signal in which both Jessie and Biggs advanced ahead.

"You should join AVALANCHE. After all, you're doing this for the planet, the same as us." Wedge said to Cloud.

"Not interested." Cloud replied as he really had no intention to stay with them.

"Wedge!" ordered Barret as he turned his attention to Cloud as Wedge nodded.

"Ex-Soldier huh? I don't trust ya!" Barret said before he ran to the reactor.

'_I shouldn't even bother telling these idiots, especially him. Once the job's done I'm outta here.'_ Cloud thought in annoyance, before he looked up at the mako reactor and followed Barret leaving Wedge who was securing their escape route. They reached a sealed door that Biggs and Jessie were examining.

"Yo! This your first time in a reactor?" asked Barret.

"Hardly, I did used to work for Shinra you know." said Cloud.

"The Planet's full of mako energy and people use it everyday," He paused, clenching his fist. "It's the life blood of the of the Planet. But Shinra keeps suckin' the blood out with these machines."

"The life blood of the Planet," said Cloud. "So the Planet will eventually dry up and die?" he asked in which Barret nodded in response until the gate opened.

"Code deciphered." Biggs announced with a code-breaking device in his hand as another gate was being unlocked by Jessie with the same device Biggs has in her hands.

"Code deciphered." said Jessie as the gate opened to reveal an elevator in which Cloud, Barret, and Jessie entered leading them deeper into the reactor. Jessie stayed behind leaving both Cloud and Barret into the deepest part of the reactor. On the way, Cloud found a _**Restore**_ **Materia** lying around on the floor.

**[End OST]**

* * *

"When we blow this place, it ain't gonna be nothin' more than a hunka junk," said Barret. He gestured at the main part of the reactor. "Cloud, you set the bomb." Barret declared.

"Why me? Shouldn't you do it?" Cloud asked.

"Just do it!" Barret demanded. "I gotta watch to make sure you don't pull nothin'!"

"Fine," said Cloud, walking up to the reactor. "I'll do it."

Cloud stopped in front of the reactor and set the bomb on the valve. For a brief moment, he was struck by another headache and Cloud could've sworn he saw a black feather gently fall towards the ground.

"What's wrong Cloud? Hurry it up!" said Barret impatiently.

"Yeah, sorry…" said Cloud as he recovered. He set up the timer for 20 minutes which should give them enough time for them to escape the reactor before it explodes. As his finger hovered over the button to activate the bomb, alarms started going off which got Cloud turned around with his hand on the hilt of the Buster Sword ready for combat. **(1)**

**[Play FF7 Remake - Those Who Fight Further by Slayer Santiago]**

"Huh? You double-crossing!" said Barret as he pointed towards Cloud.

Cloud ignored Barret as he heard something heavy approaching them making him tense. He then looked up finding the source of the noise dropping down from the ceiling.

"Heads up!" Cloud warned.

"What in the hell!?" shouted Barret as he looked up to see what came landing in front of them was a giant red mechanical scorpion.

"A Scorpion Sentinel!" said Cloud as he wasted no time rushing in close combat with his bandaged Buster Sword attacking the Scorpion Sentinel.

"Hey! How the hell do we fight this thing?" asked Barret firing from a distance.

"It's got reinforced armor plating-but the internals can be overloaded. _**Lightning**_ magic." said Cloud as he hacked and slashed the Scorpion Sentinel before he dodge rolled away from getting crushed.

"No other option, huh? Hraaagh!" said Barret as he continued to lay bullets to the Scorpion Sentinel until it launched Mark 99 Launchers at Cloud.

"Shit!" Cloud cursed as he dodged the oncoming barrage of missiles targeting him.

"Uhhh, should I be worried!?" asked Barret as he saw the barrage of missiles. Cloud didn't reply as he continued fighting the mechanical scorpion and rushed at it with seven consecutive thrusting attacks using his **Sonic Blade **limit. **(2)** The Scorpion Sentinel jumped away from them and attached itself on the wall.

"It's on you." said Cloud seeing that his sword won't reach and Barret can with his ranged attacks.

"Guess it's my turn," said Barret as he fired his gun arm at the scorpion which began retaliating by launching more missiles at them which they dodged.

"Not good enough!"

The Scorpion Sentinel landed back on the platform where Cloud and Barret are and tried to attack until Cloud short-circuited it with _**Thunder**_.

"Aww yeah! Time for some hardcore payback!" exclaimed Barret as he started dealing some damage. "Going all out!" said Cloud as he started punishing the robot with some fast sword swings.

The Scorpion Sentinel recovered and jumped to the wall and crawled as it jumped again landing on the other side of the platform Cloud and Barret were as it lifted it's mechanical front legs and slammed them on the ground. Green hexagonal patterns started to cover the scorpion boss.

"The hell is that!?"

"A barrier? Never seen this defense system before…" Cloud remarked as he ran towards the boss.

"Tch, thought you were the expert!"

"So what's your brilliant plan, genius?" Cloud sassed back as he swung his sword at the robot but did no damage seeing as his attacks just bounce right off. He was then grabbed by the Scorpion Sentinel which then raised its tail at Cloud.

"It's my time to shine!" said Barret as he fired a charged focused shot at the robot which made it release Cloud from it's metal pincers. "Hey! Ain't there something you want to say to yours truly?"

"Bingo. Focus on that core!" said Cloud as he ignored Barret's smug and found a weakness of the Scorpion Sentinel beneath its tail and started slashing at it and rolled away from it as it slammed its body creating an electrical burst attack.

"Oh _now_ he remembers. Don't keep me waiting in suspense next time!"

The Sentinel Scorpion's barrier defense system soon turned from green to red hexagonal patterns and started to leap onto the wall again, this time it shot missiles towards the ceiling making debris fall down before landing on the other side of the platform.

"Dammit. Need to heal up soon..." Cloud noted until he noticed the tail being raised and a laser being charged up. "Watch the tail! You don't want to be hit by that laser!" Cloud warned as he hid behind a piece of debris that provided cover and healed himself using a potion.

"Huh!? So whadda we do!?"

"Don't get hit! Take cover behind that debris!"

Barret hid behind another piece of debris nearby Cloud as the tail fired its laser at Cloud which didn't seem to penetrate his cover until the laser stopped.

"Strike now before it fires again!" As Cloud flips into the air swinging his Buster Sword downwards using his **Braver** limit with Barret following up with machine gun fire. "Suck on this!" Barret yelled.

A green glow started to surround the Scorpion Sentinel from underneath.

"Aw hell! What's it doing now?!

"An auto repair unit? Dammit-we gotta take it out quick or we're screwed!" Cloud said as he noticed the glow originating from the scorpion's left leg. "Aim for the left leg!"

"Don't worry about that," said Barret as his gun arm started to charge up a bright orange orb of energy charging his **Big Shot** limit. "This one right here is for the planet!"

Barret fired his **Big Shot** and it consumed both targets in a fiery explosion destroying the Scorpions healing unit, but the robot was barely managing until Cloud appeared in front of it.

"You're as good as dead!" Cloud said as he finished it off with his **Cross Slash **limit making three slash marks that made a 凶 kanji. **(3)**

The Scorpion Sentinel began to collapse until it raised its tail up charging another laser. Seeing this, both Cloud and Barret jumped to the side as the tail laser started to go out of control and hit the reactor.

"Shit! The bomb!" exclaimed Barret as he noticed and jumped back as pieces of debris fell down and caused the bomb to activate the timer.

"20 minutes until detonation…"

"C'mon let's get out of here!" Cloud said as he and Barret both started their escape out of the burning reactor that started its countdown to explode.

**[End OST]**

* * *

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise**

* * *

**(1) Final Fantasy VII Remake - E3 Sentinel Scorpion Boss Fight**

**(2) Sonic Blade - Sora's Limit from Kingdom Hearts**

**(3) ****凶 ****is the kanji for 'Kyo' which translates "Misfortune" or "Curse"**

* * *

_AN: So this took about a week longer than expected. Honestly this whole chapter was just the Scorpion Sentinel boss fight in the FF7 Remake presentation from E3. Reason for this being was because of a few things that got me busy in life, also it may have been because I was in a bit of depression. Recently I received a review for this fanfic stating whether or not I'm illiterate, so yeah that kind of hit me. _

_I'm sure some of you have heard but very recently, Kyoto Animation was set on fire and over 33 people were killed. This pained me a bit seeing as I'm part of the anime community. I know others have mixed feelings with this and I do hope you share your condolences and hope for their recovery._

_I'm kind of sad when I was writing this chapter because I want the FF7 Remake to come out already so I can get my hands on the Soundtrack CD that receive in the pre-order. Of course if you love Final Fantasy 7 like me, I order the First-Class edition. So when the remake does come out I'll update this as well as future updates with the remake OST, but for now please enjoy the OST that I'll be putting in the future chapters or you could just listen to the audio of the boss fight since it's basically what I got from YouTube to here. Plus shout-out to the "TAKE MY WALLET!" guy at the end of the FF7 Remake presentation._

_Before any of you get on my case about why I gave Cloud the Sonic Blade limit which rightfully belongs to Sora, think about what I'm about to explain to all of you. Yes Sora does get it after the Coliseum World in KH1, but if you noticed Sora learns it after Cloud practically hands it to him. Plus Cloud was the first one to use the move when you go against him with his iconic "HAAAAAH!" war cry when he either uses it or spams it for like 2 minutes._

_Also most of you know this already but I forgot to mention this in the last chapter, Steve Burton is no longer the voice actor of Cloud Strife. Yeah that kind of sucks since I've been accustomed to his voice in other titles such as Kingdom Hearts, Dissidia, and Advent Children. 17 years he's been the voice of Cloud Strife but just like Steve Burton said on his twitter about his role of Cloud, new doors open. Cody Christian is the new voice of Cloud in the FF7 Remake and personally he sounds great. In fact, I actually like the new voice cast we have so far for the FF7 Remake. Can't wait to hear how the rest of the gang will sound like Yuffie, Cait Sith, Vincent, Cid, and possibly Zack._

_As Cody Christian stated on his twitter about voicing Cloud: "__Steve, you paved the way. You made this character what it is and have contributed in shaping a legacy. Very big shoes to fill and it's both an honor and a pleasure. For all that you have done, and for all the fans, I won't let you down, thank you." Steve Burton has now passed down the role of Cloud Strife to Cody Christian making him his living legacy._

_That's about it anyway so hopefully I'll be able to get the next chapter posted up sooner. I want to make this story big and those of you who follow/fav this story already, it means so much to me but thank you for your support. Oh yeah, I'll be keeping the story arcs up until I'm able to update it since I basically have all of Disc 1 planned out. So updates on future arcs for Disc 2 & 3 will appear later on. Until next time!_

* * *

_**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise [Story Arcs]**_

_Midgar Arc - Chapters #1-10_

_Kalm & Yuffie Arc - Chapters #11-16_

_Junon to Rocket Town Arc - Chapters #17-27_

_Wutai Arc - Chapters #28-31_

_To the Forgotten City - Chapters #32-38_

_North Crater Arc - Chapters #39-42_

_Mideel & Huge Materia Arc - Chapters #41-?_

* * *

**Next Time: Lingering Will**

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	3. Chapter 2: Lingering Will

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise**

**Pairing:** Cloud x Tifa

**Summary:** What if Cloud had kept all of his memories instead of being under the assumption of a 1st Class Soldier after Zack's death? How would the story unfold with this small change? Retelling of Final Fantasy VII but with a few twists...

* * *

"Talking..."

_'Thoughts...'_

_"Flashback..."_

**Limit Break**

_**Magic/Materia/Summon**_

**[Play/End Music]**

* * *

**Chapter #2: Lingering Will**

* * *

A huge explosion came from Mako Reactor 1 and Midgar could not only see the explosion, but as well feel the shockwave from it, stretching across the entire city. President Shinra looked down from his office window from the Shinra Inc. Headquarters. He grunted as he pulled a cigar from a gold case, lighting it, and continued to stare down at the explosion remembering Heidegger's report of the mako reactor's explosion.

_"These sewer rats appear to call themselves AVALANCHE, sir."_

"Damn, AVALANCHE." President Shinra grunted. Soon after, he moved away from his window and went back to his desk, sending out a call to his fellow employees to arrange a meeting with the other staff members.

* * *

Jessie was working on something inside the ruins of the Mako Reactor while the rest of the members waited. The mission was a success and hoped they made some progress on their world-saving campaign. Cloud laid his back against the rubble, crossing his arms as he watched the members of AVALANCHE setting up a small explosion to get rid of any remaining structure of the building. Still, he couldn't believe four people and himself, would be able to cause all this damage and get through security.

"That should keep the planet going…at least for a little while longer," said Biggs as he watched his comrades, waiting for Jessie to be done.

"Yeah," said Wedge as he scouted the area, making sure no other Shinra SOLDIERS would be arriving.

Barret only nodded and soon after, Jessie was done setting up the explosion. She ordered everyone to back off the explosion and everyone started to head out of the tunnel. The bomb Jessie had set up exploded and soon a wave of fire erupted and was chasing after them, trying to find an opening to release the flames. The gang was able to escape just seconds before the flames could reach them, though Wedge seemed to be in a panic as he was running around in circles, but managed to calm himself down and walk up towards the others.

"We did this? It couldn't have been us." Biggs stated as he and the rest of the gang looked at the aftermath of burning buildings due to the mako reactor's destruction affecting Sector 1.

"But what if it was?" Wedge questioned.

"What's done is done." Cloud stated as everyone turned their attention to him.

"It ain't pretty, but we can't stop now this just the first reactor," said Barret as he clenched his fingers into a fist. "Y'all gotta look at the bigger picture here. Nothing worth fighting for is ever won without sacrifice."

"All right, now let's get out of here," ordered Barret, "Rendezvous at Sector 8 station! Split up and get on the train!"

Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge nodded in agreement and went off in separate ways. Barret was about to leave until Cloud stopped him before he could run off towards the train station.

"H-hey! Wait! Not to sound rude or anything," said Cloud crossing his arms, "But what about my pay?" Barret glared but didn't argue.

"Save it 'till we're back at the hideout at Sector 7!" Barret yelled as he ran off as Cloud gave a small sigh as went on his own separate way to meet them at the rendezvous point.

* * *

As Cloud was going through an alleyway that was on fire, he couldn't really help but wonder as to what he had gotten himself into. Joining an eco-terrorist group to save the planet from Shinra all for the sake of Tifa. Well, more like she forced him into joining although Cloud didn't seem to like the idea since he hasn't been made it official to be an AVALANCHE member.

Would he continue with AVALANCHE? Would taking down Shinra bring closure to Zack's sacrifice for paying the price of freedom? Unfortunately his thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice that sent chills down his spine.

"Can you bear to see the Planet suffer, Cloud?" a voice said as Cloud saw it belonged to a man wearing a long black coat with silver pauldrons, black boots and black trousers. The top of his coat is open to reveal his chest, with black leather suspenders crossed over it. But the most distinct feature of his appearance was his long silver hair with bangs parted to either side of his face.

"You're not real! You're…" Cloud couldn't finish as he was staring his mako blue eyes into green cat-like eyes that bore into his soul. The very same eyes that he encountered when his hometown was burning. The eyes that belonged to the fabled Shinra SOLDIER of legends, Sephiroth.

"Cloud," Sephiroth greeted as he held out his left hand. "I have a favor to ask of you. _Run away_, you _have_ to leave. You have to _live_." Sephiroth said as his lips formed into a small sinister smile.

"YOU BASTARD! YAHHH!" Cloud yelled as his anger took control of him and rushed at him with the Buster Sword drawn swinging down at Sephiroth. Sephiroth didn't move as his head lifted up as if time was starting to move slowly with slit green eyes meeting Cloud's before he vanished.

Cloud only swung nothing but empty air, putting out the fires leaving him in the dark alleyway. "Hold on to that hatred." Sephiroth's voice echoed in the dark alley as Cloud only lowered his head clenching his teeth in anger.

* * *

Cloud had so many thoughts running through his head after his encounter with Sephiroth that he didn't notice a woman, an attractive woman was standing in front of him. She wore a long pink dress that went down to her shin, the top buttoned and few of the buttons on the lower part left unbuttoned, a small red jacket over her dress, brown boots, metal bracers on her wrist, and held a small basket of flowers. She had long brown hair that was twisted together nicely into a ponytail with a red ribbon holding it in place behind her head.

**[Play FFVII ACC OST - Aerith's Theme]**

"Are you okay?" she asked as she smiled at Cloud, which Cloud could only stare into her emerald green eyes.

"I'm fine." Cloud responded as he continued on his way to meet up with the rest of AVALANCHE. The flower girl ran up in front of him to stop him, holding up a yellow flower. "Here, this is for you!" the flower girl smiled as she offered him a flower.

"A flower?" Cloud asked since he knew there aren't a whole lot flowers in Midgar. "Do you like them? They are only a gil." she said as she also brought up a red and white flower.

"A gil huh?" asked Cloud as he inched closer to the flowers. It would be a nice gift to take back with him to the hideout and the girl seemed really nice and sweet to trust. Cloud nodded and handed out a gil to her as she gave Cloud the flowers.

**[End OST]**

_'I bet Tifa will like these.'_ Cloud thought as he looked at the flowers, but his thoughts were interrupted as he looked up to see the flower girl dropped the basket of flowers as she was waving her arms as if she was being attacked by an invisible enemy. Cloud was about to speak until she reached for his left forearm. "Help me!"

As she grabbed him, Cloud's eyes widened as suddenly both he and the flower girl looked to see strange misty black wraiths were surrounding them. Cloud's right hand twitched ready to grab the Buster Sword until he heard distorted voices coming from the wraiths.

"Reunion..."

_'Reunion? What reunion? What's going on?'_

The wraiths then vanished leaving both Cloud and the flower girl in the streets. "Are you okay sir?" she asked as Cloud picked up the fallen flowers and placed them back in the basket and handed it to her. "Yeah, you should go. The army is likely looking for me." She looked confused but decided not to ask. "Thank you for your patronage." she said with a smile.

As the flower girl headed off, Cloud couldn't help but thought _'Who was that girl?'_ as he was adjusting to the events that just transpired. He looked back to his flowers. He wondered what he would do them with all these flowers, but still, it was nice he only got them for a gil.

**[Play FFVII OST - Those Who Fight]**

Before Cloud could think any further, a group of Shinra infantrymen in jeeps were approaching towards him, which caught Cloud's attention.

"Freeze," yelled an infantryman as others started pointing their guns at him, slowing approaching him. Cloud takes out his Buster Sword ready to fight until he grasped his head hearing a voice.

"Run!"

Cloud turned and ran hearing an infantryman "Get back here!" which was then followed by gunfire. Cloud ran until he saw the train approach next to him on the other side of a rail. He tucked the flowers into his pocket and raised the Buster Sword to his side shielding him from the barrage of bullets that were aimed at him. He jumped on top of the rail and landed hard on top of the train and disappeared inside the tunnel.

**[End OST]**

* * *

As the train continued to move, Biggs, Wedge, Jessie, and Barret were sitting the cargo room. Everyone had met up in the train station, however, Cloud was missing. They all had wondered where Cloud had gone.

"Cloud never came." sighed Wedge sadly as he stared at the ground.

"…You think he was killed?" asked Biggs as he stared at the others looking for an answer.

"No way!" yelled Barret towards Biggs. He may not have trusted him, but he knew he wouldn't go down so easily, especially if it was just his first mission with AVALANCHE.

"Cloud," sighed Jessie as she stared out of the window.

When the bomb had been placed, Jessie got her foot stuck and was unable to remove it. Cloud had came to her rescue and helped her foot get unstuck. At first she didn't trust Cloud when they had first met on the mission, thinking he was the enemy until Biggs had told her he was Ex-SOLDIER. And after saving her, she began to have a crush on him.

"Say, do you think Cloud's…going to fight to the end for AVALANCHE," asked Biggs as he stared towards Barret breaking the silence.

"The hell would I know!?" yelled Barret as he was in no mood for questions and answers. "Do I look like a mind reader?"

Barret banged his fist down at the crate next to him and continued to yell out towards his gang. "Hmph! If y'all weren't such screw-ups…"

"Hey Barret. What about our money?" asked Wedge which was a bad question to ask, and Barret responded by banging his fist again on the crate, making Wedge look down. "Uh…nothin'…sorry."

Biggs and Jessie groaned softly knowing they were probably not going to get paid after that stunt Wedge had made. Just then, everyone heard a small noise above them, like a thud, and then a small banging from the door. At first everyone stared at each other, wondering which person caused it, and then they heard it again, only a little louder. Both Barret and Biggs were standing on each side of the door with Barret and his gun-arm and Biggs with his pistol ready.

"On my go.." said Barret as Biggs nodded waiting for the signal. Just then, the side door opened and Cloud jumped inside making an entrance. Everyone jumped in surprise as they called out Cloud's name thinking he was dead or captured by Shinra.

"Looks like I'm a little late." said Cloud as he looked around.

"Damn right you were late," yelled Barrett. "Come waltzin' in here makin' a big scene!"

"It's no big deal, just what I always do." said Cloud looking away from Barret pretending to be cool since they still thought of him as a 1st Class SOLDIER, which he was not.

"Shi't," grunted Barret as he gave out an angry look towards Cloud, "Havin' everyone worried like that! You don't give a damn 'bout no one but yourself!"

Cloud looked back towards Barret and gave out a small grunt that was barely heard, "Hm…you were worried about me? Thought you didn't trust me?"

"I don't, but I keep my promises so you'll get your pay." said Barret as he walked off towards the end of the cart that was heading toward the front of the train. He turned around yelling out towards the gang who were now back together. "Wake up! We're moving out! Follow me!"

As Barret jumped off into the next cart in front, Wedge walked up to him. "Hey Cloud! You were great back there!"

Once Wedge had jumped, Biggs went up to him as well. "Heh heh…Cloud. We'll do even better next time."

Once Biggs had left, Jessie walked up towards the side door Cloud had gone through and closed it. She smiled at Cloud, noticing his face was dark, "Oh! Cloud! Your face is pitch-black…"

Jessie took out some kind of handkerchief from her pocket and rubbed the soot off his face, although, Jessie's handkerchief was a little dirty and although she removed the dirt off his face, Cloud now had some kind of grease-looking dirt on his face now. Jessie smiled as she thought it seemed better knowing Cloud's face was clean, she held up a green materia to him which made Cloud stare back in confusion.

"You can have it. For saving my life." Jesse said as she handed it to him and jumped to the next cart.

Cloud looked down noting that Jessie given him an **_Ice_ Materia** now putting him with four **Materia: **_**Fire,** **Lightning, Restore, **_and_ **Ice**_. Cloud reached down his pockets and grabbed the flowers he had placed. They were left undamaged, which made him sigh in relief. He was thinking about how he decided maybe he would give them to Tifa once they arrived. It was going to be a long ride to reach their destination, so as he placed the flowers back, he jumped off into the next cart to meet with the others.

* * *

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise**

* * *

_AN: Whew! Another chapter done! So glad that I was able to get this out soon, I tried to make it as remake as possible with Sephiroth's appearance and the ghost wraiths that appeared in the trailers. Seriously I think those might be the Sephiroth clones that you encounter at Nibelheim, but since the remake decides to add a few elements we don't know for sure. Really pleased as to how this chapter turned out and that I'm making progress with this story. Until next time, bye-bye!_

* * *

**Final Fantasy VII - The Other Promise [Story Arcs]**

Midgar Arc - Chapters #1-10

Kalm Yuffie Arc - Chapters #11-16

Junon to Rocket Town Arc - Chapters #17-27

Wutai Arc - Chapters #28-31

To the Forgotten City - Chapters #32-38

North Crater Arc - Chapters #39-42

Mideel Huge Materia Arc - Chapters #41-?

* * *

**Next Time: Seventh Heaven**

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	4. Update

**Hello! As you can see this is an update as to what exactly is going on with this fanfic. So recently as you all know, the FF7 Remake demo has officially came out and it blew my expectations. That's also the problem unfortunately, because of the trailers they've released the story elements have completely changed.**

* * *

**I mean I knew they said they're retelling Midgar, but I didn't expect it to be this in-depth. Like we all know how the story goes but the way it happens and how is just different, and I want to do the same with this fanfic but got no ideas. For everyone who fav/followed this story, you have my deepest gratitude but I've decided that I'm going to be putting this fanfic on temporary hiatus until I beat all of FF7 Remake.**

* * *

**Now some of you are probably thinking _'why would you do that?'_ but let's be honest, we all want to play it. It's literally less than a month away and I'm sure you all have been waiting for the game longer than this. Plus I hope to gain some inspiration from playing the Remake to see what I can put in the story, so please bear the wait just a little longer and I promise to come back with some content. I hope you all you can understand the struggle I've made to this decision and hope you all have a great time playing the FF7 Remake to your heart's content.**


End file.
